Car ownership, while a great thing, can come with a few downsides that they don't exactly tell you about in Driver's Ed. For instance, fluctuating gas prices can wreak havoc on your wallet. Sudden, unexpected repairs can do the same to an even more extreme level. In some states, you also have to worry about the dreaded safety inspection/emissions test, and may the car gods help you if you've got a check engine light on, because now your car is suddenly illegal to drive on the road.One more money-draining issue plaguing car owners is the cost of regular maintenance. Some vehicles on the road are quite expensive to keep running at their best. However, others, like the 2021 Toyota Corolla, are extremely cheap to keep running optimally. In fact, it's so cheap to maintain, that it costs less than a dollar a day. Think of all the things you spend that much money on per day, like coffee, lunch, and even the bag of chips from the corner store. All of these cost more than keeping an entire modern Toyota in tip-top shape. You Don't Have To Ditch The Daily Breakfast Sandwich Toyota We'll start with an obvious fact: there are 365 days in a regular calendar year, or 366 during a leap year. The 2021 Toyota Corolla costs, on average, $362 per year to maintain, according to RepairPal. Irrefutably, that means the '21 Corolla costs just 99 cents per day to maintain. It's important to note what RepairPaltakes into consideration when calculating average annual regular maintenance costs, which are things like oil changes, brake pad and rotor replacements, serpentine belts, alignments, and battery replacements.When it comes to how the '21 Corolla's tiny annual maintenance cost stacks up to the compact segment average, it manages to take the top spot out of 36 compact models whose reliability has been reviewed by RepairPal. J.D. Power, another respected authority when it comes to reliability rankings, awarded the Corolla with a score of 88 out of a possible 100 points. RepairPal's own reliability scoring for the model came in at 4.5 out of 5, or "Excellent." The site also made sure to factor in unexpected repairs in its scoring.Toyota Luckily for Corolla owners, the chances of running into an unexpected repair is quite low. Again referring to RepairPal, it's reported that, on average, '21 Corolla owners will need to visit a service center for an unexpected repair 0.3 times per year. In other words, that's just once in roughly three years. Some folks don't even keep the same car for that long. In addition, the chances of a necessary repair being severe are just seven percent, compared to an average of 11 percent for all compact models. Here's What Makes It So Reliable Toyota One of the main ingredients in the 2021 Corolla's reliability stew is its engine or, rather, its pair of engines. At base level sits a 1.8-liter inline-four belonging to Toyota's ZR engine family, and its specific engine codename is "2ZR-FAE." It boasts a 16-valve, DOHC valvetrain along with Toyota's dual VVT-i variable valve timing on both its intake and exhaust valves. Both its block and cylinder head are cast from aluminum. The 2021 Corolla L, LE, and XLE grades make exclusive use of the 2ZR-FAE.Sitting at the higher end of the scale is a 2.0-liter inline-four going by the name of "M20A-FKS", which is found on the '21 Corolla's sportier SE and XSE trims. The motor belongs to an entirely different family than the smaller 1.8 called the Toyota Dynamic Force. The Corolla's M20A-FKS takes advantage of an undersquare design, wherein the mill's piston stroke is longer than its cylinder bores are wide. In addition, its D-4S fuel injection setup reportedly helps the mill achieve a thermal efficiency rate of over 40 percent.Toyota As for transmissions, the '21 Corolla L, LE, and XLE all take advantage of Toyota's CVTi-S. SE and XSE models have a choice between a six-speed manual transmission or a "Dynamic Shift" CVT, which features a psuedo-first gear called the Launch Gear. Using the Launch Gear, SE and XSE models enjoy a reported increase in responsiveness, along with higher efficiency. It's also more robust than a traditional CVT, as the Launch Gear takes much of the strain seen by normal CVTs during initial acceleration. What The 2021 Corolla Has To Offer: Overview ToyotaAcross all 2021 Corolla trim levels, each one comes standard with a full complement of LED exterior lighting, along with color-matched wing mirrors and door handles, something seldom seen on base models of yore. However, moving up to a grade like the Corolla XLE will net you upgrades like heated mirrors, a power sliding moonroof, and a set of 16-inch alloy wheels. Top-spec XSE examples gain even more standard exterior kit, like gray side moldings, dual exhaust tips, and a rear spoiler.Toyota Moving inside, base-spec examples make do with bare-bones kit like a six-way manually-adjusted driver's seat, along with a four-way manually-adjusted passenger seat. Moving higher up in trim spec comes with things like seats trimmed with SofTex, a synthetic leather-equivalent material in XLE models. All 2021 Corollas come standard with power central locking, along with an integrated back-up camera. How Much You'll Pay Toyota If the prospect of paying next to nothing to maintain a well-sorted, trustworthy little car appeals, you're thinking like loads of other Americans, too. Luckily, getting yourself into a 2021 Toyota Corolla doesn't cost nearly as much as an arm and a leg does. Looking at the market, a base-level "L"-trimmed 2021 Corolla will most likely run you around $13,000 with average mileage and average condition. However, if you're more of a bells-and-whistles type of person, and you need the best of the best, the top-spec '21 Corolla XSE Apex Edition will cost you about $19,000. We'll list out the remaining trim levels and their current average prices below:LE: $15,700 SE: $16,900 SE Nightshade Edition: $17,750 XLE: $17,350 SE APEX: $18,100 XSE: $18,550 When all is said and done, any 2021 Toyota Corolla you choose will have the same, basic themes: reliability and cost-effectiveness. Also, make sure to enjoy your daily coffee, seeing as you'd have earned it by choosing to go with the little Toyota.
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